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The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2012

Noma, the Copenhagen restaurant famed for its foraged cuisine was recognised again by the foodies around the world, topping Restaurant magazine’s World's 50 Best Restaurants list for a third year running.

At a ceremony attended by the most respected chefs in the industry (plus some of Stylist’s favourite cooks, Rachel Khoo and Thomsina Miers) Noma’s Rene Redzepi explained how bookings at Noma had increased from 14 on a Monday night to a 1,000-strong guest list after winning the award.

Hosted at London’s Guildhall, the ‘Foodie Oscars’ predictably had some impressive canapés – from a Venus fly trap filled with San Marzano water and tomatoes, to foie gras lollipops and garlic pannacotta on toast, plus the Slow Food UK roulette wheel, which revealed a different type of British cuisine after every spin (the Damson jam on sourdough bread was divine).

The controversial list features surprisingly few British restaurants compared to years past, with Heston Blumenthal’s Dinner debuting at number 9 the highest new entry, but the only English establishment to make the top 10. Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck dropped to number 13 and Notting Hill restaurant The Ledbury at 14 were the only other UK restaurants on the list.

Chosen by a panel of 800 international restaurant industry experts, the rest of the top 50 is dominated by the USA, France and Spain, with 8, 7 and 5 restaurants respectively making the cut.

Here’s the top ten. Let us know what you think of the list by commenting below or tweeting us @StylistMagazine.

Want to try some of the world’s best restaurants for yourself? You may have to endure an endless waiting list – but if that doesn’t put you off, The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2012 Guide is available to buy now.